Using the collections endowment fund established by Ethel and Oscar Allen, WIS has acquired a rare and valuable collection of ca. 60,000 lichen specimens from German lichenologist, Klaus Kalb. The collection is especially rich in tropical and Old World species, especially from Africa, Australia, and Brazil, and includes a number of complete exsiccatae. Historically, WIS’ lichen collection has been heavily weighted toward species from temperate zones and the Arctic, and so acquisition of Kalb’s collection means now that WIS can boast possession of >70% of the world’s known lichen species. To read more follow this link to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel online.
You can also listen to a live broadcast about the acquisition from Nov 20, 2014 on WI Public Radio.